Sudanese security agents on Tuesday detained a group of university professors in Khartoum headed for a sit-in protest against President Omar al-Bashir's government, fellow academics told AFP.

Deadly protests have rocked the east African country for weeks since a government decision to triple the price of bread last December.

The protests have escalated into nationwide demonstrations against Mr Bashir's government, with protesters calling for the veteran leader's resignation.

On Tuesday, the authorities deployed security forces near the University of Khartoum where professors and lecturers had planned to hold a sit-in, witnesses said.

"Fourteen professors, eight from University of Khartoum and six from other universities, were on their way to take part in the sit-in when security agents took them away," University of Khartoum professor Mamdouh Mohamed Hassan said.